From Environmental Burden to Valuable Feedstock: A Rapid Review of Wood Waste and Residue Markets

Wood waste and residues are increasingly viewed as feedstocks for the circular bioecon-omy, yet their market development remains uneven. This rapid review synthesized 125 studies published between 1967 and 2025 to examine research trends, feedstock characteristics, market constraints, and emerging opportunities through Marketing Mix and Innovation perspectives. Research was concentrated in North America and Europe (68.0%), and quantitative approaches accounted for 75.2% of the studies. Logistics and infrastructure were the most frequently reported constraints (61.6%), followed by competition (38.4%), supply–demand conditions (32.0%), and lack of standardization (14.4%). Energy-related applications remained prominent (87.2%), while 45.6% of studies also addressed material or bioproduct applications, indicating diversification rather than replacement of established uses. The synthesis shows that technological advances alone do not create viable markets. Residue characteristics, transportation, processing capacity, competing uses, pricing and distribution arrangements, institutional coordination, policy, and financing jointly shape utilization pathways. Marketing Mix and Innovation perspectives provide complementary explanations of how these markets are configured and how they change. Wood residues can become valuable feedstocks, but their value is context dependent and relies on alignment between specific residue streams and viable markets.